In an era where the speed and quality of product delivery are of the highest priority, manufacturers, warehouse managers, and e-commerce businesses cannot take their eyes off the prize. In other words, a consumer’s patience and brand loyalty are quick to change depending on how well they are serviced. Once an order comes in, employees on the shopfloor are expected to quickly align themselves to an intralogistics workflow that today is simply too fast to handle alone. In order to help organisations better manage such setbacks, manufacturing solution providers were quick to understand what the obvious response needed to be: automation. Thus, the concept of automatic guided vehicles (AGV) emerged, where the devices would assist workers on the shop floor in better finding, moving, and delivering various loads throughout a facility. However, the challenge of meeting increasing demands for manufacturers in the industries of automotive, fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), and pharmaceuticals continued to climb, and AGV technology was constantly required to advance. And not all solution providers were experienced or equipped enough to deliver on the growing expectations of the market. Recognising this fast-developing need as early as the 80s, ASTI Mobile Robotics, a company with extensive mechanical and industrial engineering expertise, began building and advancing the realm of AGV technology to support manufacturers and facility managers in their 24/7 intralogistics operations.

Based out of Burgos, Spain, ASTI Mobile Robotics is currently one of the most prominent solution providers for all internal logistics needs on an international level. It dedicatedly studies the changing trends and needs of its customers, promptly designing and manufacturing a slew of flexible products and AGVs to streamline the movement of materials and goods within any facility. “We have been recognised as a leader in AGV manufacturing throughout Europe by Forbes and yearly AGV supplier rankings from the Leibniz University of Hannover,” expresses Guido Resch, Chief Business Development and Sales Officer at ASTI Mobile Robotics. It is also important to note that the company is owned and led by Veronica Pascual, a celebrated business professional that triggered several positive changes in her company since 2004, when she acquired the company by her parents. Since then, ASTI Mobile Robotics has grown from a small family organisation to an impressive 300-member group that maintains several international relationships and an ever-increasing client base.

The company today offers an extensive range of driverless vehicles to the market. Among these solutions, its Mouse line and Goods to Person (G2P) applications, in particular, are undoubtedly noteworthy.

Our AGVs are designed to increase the flexibility and efficiency of all intralogistics and production flows

These intuitively designed AGVs perform tirelessly on the shopfloor with the highest level of safety for both the goods and employees. The intralogistics towing machines are extremely compact, agile, and connected, allowing facility managers to operate more flexibly. “Everybody’s talking about Industry 4.0, which means more adaptability and customisability. Our Mouse product can help implement this new trend more effectively by creating an agile manufacturing flow that replaces the fixed layouts of conveyor belts,” explains Resch. ASTI Mobile Robotics’ AGVs can be easily adjusted to suit a client’s unique workflows as well as support flexible robot cell manufacturing processes.

The company’s G2P application aligns its competencies with the modern ecommerce culture, where expediting material flow handling processes and increasing overall efficiencies is the core objective. In addition to effectively streamlining the ‘picking and put-away’ operations in a facility, the solution improves and quickens delivery functions from storage areas to picking stations without any intervention of a physical employee. At this point, an operator can sort out products from an order with ease. The G2P applications grant users complete control over several numbers of stock-keeping units (SKU) in near real-time, all the while providing them with full traceability of goods at every stage, from storage to shipment. Such a comprehensive, end-to-end solution not only supports facility managers in improving the overall productivity on the shop floor but also manages high volumes of orders during peak seasons like Christmas or even weekend sales on schedule with increased accuracy and safety.

Owing to such comprehensive expertise in the field of AGV innovation, ASTI Mobile Robotics rightly stands as one among the leading solutions providers for the automotive, FMCG, cosmetics, and pharmaceutical industries, where speed and quality mean everything. “Our AGVs are designed to increase the flexibility and efficiency of all intralogistics and production flows,” adds Resch.

The company has also been a key player in helping various ecommerce businesses and healthcare providers in operating effectively despite the setbacks caused by the pandemic of 2020. Leveraging its robotics expertise, ASTI Mobile Robotics introduced an AGV specifically designed for disinfection based on UV light to fend away the possibility of infection. “We combined UV light technology, which was provided by BOOS Technical Lighting, with our autonomous AGV platform to a more highly automated disinfection solution,” says Resch. This product has been employed by numerous hospitals to disinfect patients’ rooms and for various other medical procedures.

With such strong capabilities and advanced engineering expertise, ASTI Mobile Robotics is set to revolutionise the manufacturing landscape. Moving forward, the company intends to continually invest in its hardware and software development to ensure it stays ahead of the curve, creating new solutions and adding more value to the production processes of its clients. With the motto ‘transforming the future together’, ASTI Mobile Robotics is creating waves of change in the field today, marching towards IoT innovation as its next frontier.